The Day: Eightmile River Closer to National Designation

The Eightmile River and its watershed are now within one vote of finally becoming part of the National Park Service's Wild and Scenic Rivers System.

The House of Representatives on Tuesday voted 253-172 to pass a bill making the Eightmile part of the Wild and Scenic system. The vote gives three rural towns in the watershed — Salem, East Haddam and Lyme — access to federal grants and other programs to enhance its protection. It also rewards the local groups that have worked for 10 years to win the designation for the river.

Currently, 168 rivers nationwide are included in the system, among them only one in Connecticut, the Farmington River.

The Senate is expected to vote on a companion bill in the next couple of weeks, according to a spokeswoman for Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn. If that measure is approved, a final version would then go to President Bush, who is expected to sign it.

The decade-long task involved a lengthy study documenting the environmental value of the watershed, numerous town meetings and a grass-roots campaign to build support among local residents as well as local, state and federal elected officials.

“This is a huge step and the one we needed,” said Nathan Frohling, vice chairman of the local committee that has been shepherding the Eightmile designation project.

“One of the things we're so pleased about is that the voices from Connecticut have been so unified.”

The bill had bipartisan support of the entire Connecticut congressional delegation, as well as the state legislature and Republican Gov. M. Jodi Rell. Residents of all three towns voted in separate meetings last year to seek the designation for the river, which begins at Devil's Hopyard State Park and flows through dozens of forested acres before emptying into the Connecticut River at Hamburg Cove.

Passage of the bill Tuesday is a major victory for freshman Rep. Joe Courtney because it was the first bill he introduced when he took the Second District seat after defeating incumbent Republican Rep. Rob Simmons.

“The passage of this bill is the culmination of years of advocacy by the local communities surrounding the Eightmile River,” Courtney, a Democrat, said in a news release. “Environmental conservation is a crucial component to protecting the quality of life of eastern Connecticut, and this sends a signal that preserving the environment will be a top priority in my agenda.”

Twenty-three Republicans joined Democrats in voting for the bill Tuesday. Two weeks ago, 18 Republicans voted in favor in an earlier attempt to win passage that failed because the House was operating at that time under rules that required a two-thirds majority for passage rather than a simple majority.

Opposition at that time and again before the vote Tuesday was led by Rep. Rob Bishop, R-Utah, who persisted until the end in trying to add language to the bill barring any federal taking of land in the watershed. Supporters deemed the language redundant since the bill already specifically states that privately owned land in the watershed could be acquired for conservation only through voluntary sale or donation, and specifically prohibits any taking of land by eminent domain or condemnation.

“This is a scare tactic,” Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz., said of the opposition's arguments before Tuesday's vote. “The motivation for the opposition has more to do with the audacity of the gentleman from Connecticut to run for office and unseat an incumbent.”

The Day, Judy Benson, 8/1/2007